


Panic! At The Ball

by Natmellow



Category: Henry Stickmin Series (Video Games)
Genre: Ballroom, Ballroom Dancing, Crossdressing, Drinking, Drug Dealing, Escape, Feelings, Feelings Realization, Fluff, Henry is just a man of few words, Henry knows about the timelines somewhat, Jealousy, M/M, Minor fight, References to Drugs, Slow Burn, The chapter where Henry's heart goes "ah fuck.", Undercover Missions, Will add more tags as it goes along, and also is lowkey a chaos demigod, and so it starts, but he doesnt realize that yet because hes oblivious as fuck, hyperfixations got me writing about gay stickmen huh
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:28:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27414280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Natmellow/pseuds/Natmellow
Summary: Henry and Charles have a peculiar mission to complete this time around: infiltrate a ball and expose it of being a drug ring owned by its leader. However, getting in won't be that easy and a couple things might arise throughout the night...
Relationships: Charles Calvin & Henry Stickmin, Charles Calvin/Henry Stickmin
Comments: 28
Kudos: 178





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> (Add the "man" horse in a beach image here)
> 
> If you have told me months ago that I would end up writing a complex fic about two stickmen I would have laughed in your face but here we are. I just hope there's people out there who'll enjoy this lol, so have it.

"Well boys, this next mission looks like it'll be a bit fun for you." Galeforce commented, looking at the files. 

"All missions we're in are pretty fun, though!" Charles argued back with a soft chuckle, leaning dangerously back on his chair.

"Yeah yeah, guess what I meant is that this one is more… laid back, in a way." 

He tossed the file onto the table to give them a look. Henry went ahead and picked it up to see its contents, silent as always. The first thing that caught his attention was a picture in the corner of a well dressed man with, in his opinion, a rather ridiculous moustache. An equally strange jewel was in the front of his suit, which also caught a primal part of his attention. Charles dragged his chair closer and peeked over his shoulder to have a look too. 

"We've gotten leads and reports of a drug ring with him as the leader of it, but no actual concrete evidence of it." the general continued talking. "We do have a hunch of where exactly he makes his trades and moves, though."

He pointed at a specific article in between the other papers, reading:  _ "Grand Ball to Be Held at The Nightingale Mansion!"  _

"He disguises the reunions as these fancy balls that average people cannot pay to attend. Only those with tickets can enter, and we finally managed to make perfect forgeries of it."

"So what exact evidence are we looking for?" the ex-convict spoke up quietly, still looking through the files. 

"Mainly photos, audio, maybe even some of the drugs themselves…"

"And how are we getting in? Like, what are our identities in this case?" the pilot asked this time.

"For now, that's what we have to think about… these guests usually either come alone or with partners, but it's possible that you could get recognized considering-" he vaguely pointed towards Henry. "-our friend here has unusual eyes and white as snow hair. It does stand out more than we would like."

The mentioned only shrugged, as if saying 'not my fault'.

"Can he not just dye his hair black to solve that?" Charles suggested, to which Henry shook his head quickly. "Uh, then how about a wig?" 

A moment after saying that, he snickered seemingly to himself.

"What 's so funny?" the man asked.

_ "Nothing, I only had forgotten for a second that short wigs existed and imagined you with a really long one."  _ he replied, chuckling some more. 

Though it was a silly image for the pilot, it gave Galeforce an idea.

"Like a woman's wig…" he thought out loud.

"Yeah, pretty much." 

"It would be able to transform Henry into a completely different person." 

The three of them stayed silent at that for a moment, comprehending what that implied.

_ "Wait, you're not saying to dress me up as a woman are you?"  _ Henry spoke up, a hint of confusion in his voice. 

"It could work to let you two enter under the disguise of a couple, sounds better than just having both of you appear with no apparent link." Galeforce discussed. "I could even swear I've heard something like this working before…" 

"N-No, I mean, have you seen me?" the ex-convict signalled to his whole body. "What part of this is feminine enough to pass off as a woman?" 

"As you are right now of course you don't pass as one, but with the right clothing and makeup you would be a decent girl. You do have… a rather soft figure."

"Why does it have to be specifically me, huh? Why can't it be Charles instead?"

_ "Why don't the both of us wear the wig and dress and get over with it?"  _ the pilot spoke out to not have a fight start up. 

"Both…? Oh Charlie, you just gave me another idea!" the general announced happily. 

"Huh?" He expressed the sound a bit concerned.

"I bet they wouldn't see it coming if you two were undercover as girls. Two best friends, coming in to see the wonders of the ball and more… it's perfect!" 

Charles sighed in defeat, slumping over the table.

_ "Man, I dug up my own grave this time didn't I?"  _

"If I am going to be taken down you're coming down with me too, isn't that right?" Henry told him with a smirk, feeling less against the idea if he wasn't going to be the only one in it. 

"You know I'll always follow your lead Henry; no matter how weird some of your plans might be." he returned him the smirk, though it was less of a snarky grin and more of a genuine smile.

Simple gestures like that from Charles gave the previous thief a sort of weird feeling, but in a good way. It wasn't unpleasant, it simply was a strange little pinch in his chest that sparkled to life whenever he said things like that or catched onto the little quirks he had. 

They had only known each other for a little over a year now, but not in what could be considered "normal" circumstances. Henry Stickmin was known for being a thief and criminal of extraordinary feats, mainly known for escaping out of prison through the main entrance like he owned the place and stealing the famous Tunisian diamond with nothing but a scooter. This lifestyle was cut short, however, after being graciously kidnapped by the government and given a chance to have his crimes pardoned if he cooperated with them. That was the first time he worked with the enthusiastic pilot to infiltrate the airship of a crime organization, moving around with his help and getting the information they needed back. 

The thief then left after his job was done, but deep down was a bit disappointed with the idea of not seeing such a charismatic character ever again. In a mix of luck and misfortune, they crossed paths once more after Henry was taken to a maximum security prison named The Wall and promptly escaped with Charles' help after calling him (despite his inquiries, Henry never told him why he was taken to The Wall in the first place). 

It wasn't until he finished a last mission for the government, stopping the previous criminal organization's space station from launching, that he was given a place to work for them side-to-side with Charles. And why not? Not only did it give him the adrenaline he needed, but it also let him stay with one of the few people he had made a connection with in his entire life. 

That's pretty much the backstory of how this duo came to be: regarded as one of the best working teams in the government, they complemented each other perfectly and it  _ showed.  _ Charles' bright and talkative attitude helped with Henry's silent but cunning one, and separating them was a bad idea since the pilot seemed to be the only one on the same wavelength as the ex-convict when it came to their wacky plans and strategies. 

"Does that settle it, then? Do you agree with it?" Galeforce asked them, to which both nodded. "Good. The ball is tomorrow night, so we'll charge to buy the dresses and get makeup artists to work with you. Heh, that should be time enough to mentally prepare yourself, 'ey Henry?" 

The man rolled his eyes at the general, keeping silent. 

…

Up until now, this was the strangest thing Henry had done for the sake of a mission. The dress he was given was a long red dress covered in flower decals with fabric going all over his arms down to his middle finger, which was a good choice that would cover the minor scars he had in those areas. Besides the dress, he also had to wear some sort of breastplate to pass off as having actual boobs. It did its job well, alright, but it was slightly weird looking down and seeing himself with them. Since he only had to wear a wig and not actually do his hair, that part was fairly quick, but  _ dear  _ _ god  _ _ makeup took up so much more time than he had anticipated.  _ He was being given the full treatment: lipstick, blush, fake eyelashes, some concealer thing to hide the small scars in his ear and chin, eye shadow, more blush…

"Okay, I'm almost done…" the makeup artist added last minute details around with great focus, taking her time. At last, she displayed a triumphant smile and backed away. "There you have it, dear. We're finished." 

Henry let out a big sigh in relief, sinking into the chair. The woman laughed softly at his exaggerated reaction.

"Well? Aren't you going to check yourself?" 

No, he wasn't that keen on seeing how he had ended, but he thought that it would seem rude to her time and work if he didn't check himself out. He closed his eyes and moved his head to the direction of the mirror, slowly opening them to his reflection. And as they opened, they couldn't stop peeling in surprise. 

That wasn't him, was it? No, that was a completely different person. A refined woman had somehow taken the place of his reflection. A hand rose up to his face to confirm that was, indeed, him. That was Henry Stickmin.

"Hey, don't go touching your face so much or the makeup will fade." the makeup artist warned, worried herself of seeing her work be messed with. "Is this good enough?"

The thief simply held out an "okay" sign at her, too busy looking at his reflection to look at her directly. 

After a solid minute of staring he came out of the room, slightly struggling to walk. He really wasn't made to walk in heels… but he would need to get used to it. 

"God, took you long enough man!" he heard Charles say as he stood up to look at him.

Both of them froze up when seeing each other. While Henry wasn't sure about what the pilot was thinking, a million thoughts were running around frantically in his own head. Charles, with his cream curly hair and emerald green dress, looked so… nice? Beautiful? Gorgeous? Cute?

"Whoa… they really didn't lie about turning you into a whole different person, huh?" the other broke the stunned silence between them, laughing sort of awkwardly. "Are you still Henry or should I call you Henrietta now?" 

The ex-convict scoffed at him, crossing his arms. Although he wanted to reply with a snarky comeback, something was holding him back from talking. 

"What's wrong? Can't talk? Don't worry, I know the effect I have on people~" he joked, throwing a finger gun at him and going 'tsk tsk'. 

Henry's heart short circuited at that, thanking God that the makeup was thick enough to hide his natural blush.  _ Damn you Charles, damn your adorable little gestures and damn that dress that is giving you way too much power than you should have. _

All he managed to do was return the gesture back at him, though in an awkward manner. 

"But seriously, for a moment I couldn't register the fact that you were under all that. They sure did a great job on you!"

"Right back at you." he responded. "But you were less modified than I was."

"Yeah, one of the advantages of having a baby face like mine." Charles laughed it off, scratching his neck. They had only put lipstick and blush on him, having a more natural look than his own makeup. 

"How are we doing so far?-" 

General Galeforce walked in with two purses, an expression of surprise crossing his face too upon seeing them but turning softer with a deep chuckle. 

"Oh, look at you! You pass very well as two gorgeous ladies." his voice croaked with glee. Henry made a sarcastic expression in response while Charles looked away with a slight blush on his cheeks as the general patted his head. "You remind me of when my daughter went to her senior prom party…" 

"The purses." the thief both inquired and reminded him.

"Ah! Right, you'll need this." he gave one to each. "It has a small audio recorder, mini spy camera and small plastic bags for whatever evidence you might want to take back. Due to the staff checking the bags of every guest we have disguised them as ordinary objects."

Henry took out what seemed to be a compact mirror with a spiral decor on the front.

"That, for example, is the spy camera." Galeforce kept explaining. "If you press the lower mirror, it'll take a photo from the lense in the front." 

Next he took out what looked like a lipstick stick.

"That one is the recorder, but you'll need to take the lid off first before recording or else it won't recognize outside noise. The button to start the recording is down at the base, to stop it you just have to press it again." 

The duo nodded, signalling they had understood. The general sighed, giving them a last look. 

"Take care out there boys, even if this a party you have to remember it isn't an innocent one. I wouldn't be surprised if someone there tried drugging you, so please watch each other's backs." 

"Gotcha loud and clear! I'm sure nobody will try anything funny with Henry near me." Charles proudly proclaimed, putting an arm around his friend.

"And if they do, hopefully they don't mind losing a few fingers." the man replied chuckling, but you could tell he was serious.

_ "Geez, that would be a bit extreme wouldn't it?" _

"Nah, don't worry, I'll make sure to leave their thumb and index finger. The rest they can afford living without." 

The two laughed together, being interrupted by Galeforce's coughing to get their attention. 

"Let's get going now, the night is long and it won't get any easier any time soon. Prepare yourself physically and mentally, because this sure will be a crazy night."


	2. Chapter 2

The night sky was clear and bright, the moon smiling down upon them in a crescent stage. After a while, Henry could see the looming silhouette of the mansion in the distance illuminated by floor lights. The plan was to be dropped off a bit far as to not be seen in the vehicle they came in. 

"... I don't think I'll talk." he said out of nowhere after having no conversation since they left.

"Yeah, and what else is new?" the pilot replied sarcastically. 

"I mean not talk at all. I can't do a convincing feminine voice." 

"Ah, so going in mute?" Henry nodded. "More reason for us to stay close, then. I could act as your interpreter of sorts."

The man nodded again, still looking out the window. Silence fell again as the car bumped along the road and gently moved them in place. 

"So… how do you wanna do this?" Charles asked him. "What's the plan?" 

"I tend to get ideas in the moment, but… for now, I would say staying close to the guy. Keep an eye on him in case he goes somewhere else." 

"That is, if he is even part of the ball…" 

"He must present himself at some point." Henry reasoned. "It's common courtesy to greet his guests." 

"I wonder how many people will be there… you won't lose me in the crowd, right?" he joked.

"No way, I would never." the ex-convict looked back at him. 

"Even looking like this? What if you forget I'm not just some pretty girl there?" Charles displayed a playful smile. 

"You see, I can't because…" 

He was at a loss of words again, not knowing how to express what he wanted exactly. In reality the reason he wouldn't just forget about that was because his mind was so focused on the fact that  _ he  _ was the one besides him at that moment, and not someone else. He settled with making a gesture of pointing at his own eyes and then to his.

"I can recognize your eyes. Even if there were other people there who looked like you, I could recognize you by the look in your eyes." 

The other let out a half baked laugh, taken by surprise. His gaze fell down and he could tell he was biting the inside of his mouth to not outright smile, something he did when he was embarrassed because he had a habit of smiling when nervous. 

"Aw man, that's- I wish I could say the same to you, but it would be common to recognize you by your eyes. Not everyone has your clear reddish eyes." Charles chuckled. "I appreciate that Hen, it makes me feel less anxious about this." 

He flashed a smile at him before looking back at the window, the mansion being way closer now. His hand roamed the inside of his purse, making sure everything was in place and that if needed, more things could come out. 

That's one of the things that had given Henry the success of his plans: the fact that out of nowhere, he could take out seemingly random objects from whatever he had in hand. Of course, these objects weren't always useful. For the better they simply didn't work for what he needed to do or for the worse they were the catalyst for his demise, which introduces the other thing that has helped with his grand feats: he could re-do actions. He couldn't outright wind time back at any moment, it only worked with things he specifically did. No matter how many times and ways he would fail, there was bound to at least be one option that made him move forward and succeed. There seemed to be limits though, as wounds from past failures would manifest in his final body as scars. Had he bothered to know the reason behind these supernatural abilities? No, not really. They were the reason he had survived until now, so he wasn't one to complain. At this point he had gotten so accustomed to it that it wasn't surprising anymore, it just was what it was, but he still was cautious to some degree since he didn't know completely what could actually make him stay dead. 

The rumbling of the car came to a stop and the lock on the doors opened up. 

"This is it, get out." the driver told them in a monotonous voice. 

The car drove off once they were verbally kicked out and watched it go until it disappeared from view. Henry sighed, giving it his all to walk along the rocky road with the heels.

"Need some help there, man?" Charles asked him with a bit of worry, offering his arm. His struggle must have been really apparent. 

_ "Just a little…"  _ He took his arm to stabilize himself and kept walking. "How are you so good at this?"

"At walking? I don't know, maybe my sense of balance is better than yours." despite it being his first time, he was having no problem using heels to walk. "Or maybe it's the fact I don't have your long legs." 

"I'm not that tall compared to you, what are you talking about?" a hushed chuckle escaped while he was talking, slightly muffling the last words. 

"Dude, you're like  _ at least  _ 50% legs. I can tell those legs were made for walking." 

"Oh really? So you've been looking at my legs all this time?" the ex-convict replied.

It was meant to be taken in jest, but Charles stayed silent at that and looked away. He couldn't see his expression clearly from the lack of lightning but he panicked internally, thinking he had said something he shouldn't have. 

_ "I mean, I bet other people have noticed, not only me."  _ the pilot answered after some time.  _ "When we get back just ask anybody and you'll see."  _

"That is, if we get back." 

He received a jank in response that almost made him trip.

"Don't jinx the mission Henry! C'mon, we'll get out of there as quickly as we enter. They don't call us the best for nothin'!" 

"Right-" Henry lowered his voice as they got closer to the line of people waiting to enter the party.  _ "This is it. Act natural."  _

Charles quickly nodded and took a big breath, trying to release his tension. The line was smaller than anticipated, probably because the ball had already started around half an hour ago so most of the guests were already inside. The mansion was a good distance from the actual gate to enter the property, having what looked like a spacious garden in front for first impressions. There were two bodyguards at the entrance: one checking bags and another one at the opposite side, for what he imagined, reinforcement in case things went south. However, as the line moved closer and closer, Henry noticed the guard was also… patting the guests? A knot formed in his throat. 

Fuck. Body checks. Nobody told them about there being body checks. Depending on how in-depth they made them, there was a chance they were going to be in trouble. 

The gears in his brain grinded looking for a solution to the problem, but no answer arrived up until it was their turn to be checked. 

"Ah, good evening gentleman!" the pilot greeted with a cheerfully high voice. 

"Tickets." the guard held out his hand. Judging by the lack of questions, the cover-up voice was passable. 

"Of course, here!" Charles took out the fake ticket from his purse and gave it to him, the thief doing the same. 

"...Bags." 

With no questions asked, they surrendered the purses to him. Henry locked eyes with the other guard that was supposed to check their bodies after. Decided to try, he concentrated all his intimidation into that one stare. Years of not feeling comfortable talking with people he didn't know made him perfect the art of communicating his thoughts to others through his eyes, this one being specifically the  **"Don't come near me, and even less don't touch me"** look. Under his dark shades he could tell the guard was beginning to feel uncomfortable being stared at with such intensity, but didn't dare to move his gaze away. 

"Everything's clear." the guard declared, handing the bags back. "John, proceed with the body check."

"Uh… Darreck, don't you think we can let them pass as it is?" John replied with an anxious tone. 

"Huh? What, no, all guests must go through a body check before entering."

"Yeah, but… do you seriously think two girls are here to hurt someone? That somehow they have some bomb under their dresses? We haven't even found any dangerous items until now…"

"This is literally your  _ only  _ job. Are you really that lazy?" Darreck shouted at him angrily.

Charles let out a quiet hum as if to say they were still there. Henry's stare was still focused on the scared guard.

"D-Doesn't matter, you two can go ahead." he opened the gate and pointed inside to let them in. Before they lost sight of each other, the thief gifted the guard a quick shallow smile. 

The angry bickering between the two men faded away as they adventured deeper into the garden, rows upon rows of low trees surrounding the first part of the road in the form of an arch. Eventually light shined upon them as the arch ended and were subjected by the rest of the beauties of the garden. There were the necessary bushes pruned in specific shapes, several little fields of different breeds of flowers and even a pond that was only missing a little family of ducks. From this spot the mansion loomed over them, ominous but strangely captivating.

_ "God, this looks so much like a fairy tale…"  _ was Charles' first spoken thought as he gazed around in wonder. 

_ "It must be a hell to maintain this place…"  _ was Henry's first spoken thought. 

"Oh, do you know those secret gardens rich mansions have? Do you think they have one here?" the pilot asked his partner with stars in his eyes. 

"A secret garden? For what?" 

"Usually is used as this place where two characters can meet alone and they walk around it to talk and stuff." he sighed, placing his hands together and daydreaming. "I've always wanted to visit one…" 

"And who are you meeting up with, hm?" 

"No one…  _ I think." _ he gave a quiet chuckle. "Unless someone is already waiting for me there." 

Henry's chest ached with an undescriptable feeling when Charles looked right at him after saying that. It was only for a second but it felt like hours to him, gazing at his dark eyes trying to decipher what that look meant to tell him. 

"Would you like to?" the thief asked without thinking.

"W-What?" the other stuttered, tilting his head.

"Have someone waiting for you there, I mean…" 

_ "That's-" _ he sighed flustered and waved his hand around, dismissing the topic. "We shouldn't be discussing fantasy situations right now, we need to move." 

"Right…" that dismissal made him feel stupid for asking in the first place. He probably didn't mean anything when saying that. 

Crossing the garden they made it to the open entrance of the mansion where the diverse chattering spilled out to the night. The music was rather lively for a ball, being quick but still elegant. The slower dances must be later in the night, he thought. Half of the guests were either near the bar or dancing in the center piece of the large main hall. Although normally a ballroom would be well lighted, the fact that this one looked more like a nightclub gave the feeling that something wasn't what it wanted to seem like. The only place with good lighting was the center, where the people danced away. Scanning through the crowd, Henry didn't see the leader anywhere. 

_ "Let's go to the bar. Do not get separated from me." _ he whispered to the pilot and went forth, holding his arm. 

There was a multitude of tables around the bar area, and from just glancing a good couple of them had people doing more than just drinking. Smoking, swallowing, sniffing something off the table… the thief wrinkled his nose in disgust. He was thankful that he never succumbed to the curiosity of what it would feel like to consume said substances, because he knew himself well and knew the drill of it would have gotten him addicted. He didn't need another thing to put his life at risk with. 

Reaching the bar, the bartender looked up at them. 

"What would you like?" his hoarse voice said loudly over the music.

"Let's see…" Charles could see the name of some drinks written behind him on the wall, but he didn't have any idea of what any of them were made of. "Uh… something light? The night has just started, so you know… it would be the same for the two of us." 

The bartender smirked at them and started working, getting different bottles and mixing liquids they had no knowledge about. Henry nudged at his companion and made a gesture of pointing at his eyes and then to the drink, expressing "don't take your eyes off the glass". When he was done with his creation, he passed the two glasses at the duo and went to attend other guests. 

_ "Eough…"  _ Charles winced when taking a sip, looking back at him incredulous.  _ "This tastes like ass. People actually like this stuff?"  _

The ex-convict shrugged and patted his back in comfort, taking a sip himself. Judging by Charles' reaction he would have thought the taste would be bitter but it was pretty mild in reality. Sitting down at a free table, they waited and looked around for any activity. The pilot had already taken the spy camera out and took photos of what looked like a trade in a table near of them. Yet what would actually make their night start for real was the lanky man walking towards them with a grim smile on his face and a sparkle in his eyes. 


	3. Chapter 3

"Well, what do we have here? It's been a while since I've seen such beautiful women come here~" the man greeted them with a cup of his own in hand. 

"Oh, um, thanks?" Charles was taken back by the sudden compliment, not expecting him to be so straight forward. 

"Mind if I sit here? There aren't any other seats available." 

The two nodded and the strange man sat down at their table. He was well dressed as the occasion called it, wearing a suit and a fashionable top hat. Even under it, you could tell his hair was combed back. 

"May I borrow your names? For one, I'm Alexander Johnson." he extended his hand at them to greet. 

"I'm… Charlotte. Just call me Charlotte." a nervous giggle escaped Charles' lips, taking Alexander's hand to shake.

However, what he wanted to do wasn't a handshake. Holding up his hand, the man brought it to his lips to kiss it as his form of greeting. An uneasy feeling pooled at Henry's stomach for a reason that was unknown to him. Was he experiencing second-hand embarrassment?  _ Maybe, that really was a cringy way to greet someone you just met, after all.  _

"And how about you, hm?" Alexander looked at the thief, offering his hand again.

"Her name is Henrietta, she can't talk. She's mute, you see." the pilot explained to him. 

"Mute, eh? That's definitely a bonus for me~" he laughed, but was cut short by Henry's strong grip on his hand. 

He still went to kiss his hand too, but with less softness in his eyes. It was strange... the feeling didn't come back after he was the one going through the experience. 

"I can tell this is your first time here, I don't recognize your faces… what attracted you to such a place?" 

"Oh, well, I… we've always wanted to attend a ball." 

" _ Just  _ the ball…?" Alexander inquired, raising an eyebrow. 

Charles glanced around and got closer to him, lowering his voice a little but still loud enough to be heard.

_ "To be honest, I also wanted to… try this stuff. Go a little wild, y'know?" _

"It's adorable that you think you have to be secretive about that here~" the man chuckled, slowly getting himself deeper into Henry's dislike list. "This is basically nobody's land. If you have the money, of course." 

"Right… the money…" A quick glance down, the ex-convict could see he had one of his hands inside the purse. He was probably recording their conversation. "Say, what is the cheapest thing there is here?" 

"The cheapest… what you're looking for is ecstacy. It sells like candy here, though that isn't my area." 

"Oh really? What is your area?" he was milking the information out of him, recording his own confession tape, and the poor man wasn't attentive enough on what was important to notice. 

"My speciality is acid. It's more expensive due to being more special than the regular stuff… but that's a tad too strong for a sweetheart like you to start with." 

Henry felt like throwing his glass at him and saying that it was an accident, but couldn't think of a credible way to do it. Besides, he had already ingested most of his drink. Something about the man was giving him bad vibes and pissing him off, but he couldn't place his finger on what it was. Was it his somewhat predatory behaviour? Was it the way he was looking at Charles like he was an expensive meal at a restaurant? Was it the way he was talking to him and calling him pet names? Was it the fact he had the  _ audacity  _ to act like that towards him? 

…

His hand wasn't touching the hard cup glass anymore. It was touching something warm… confused, he followed the end of his arm only to find with anxiousness that his hand had moved on his own to grab his partner's that had been resting over the table. He was about to pull away, but the other acknowledged it and turned back to look at him. 

"Hey there, need something?" Charles asked him, curious. 

He opened his mouth to say something, but remembered he wasn't supposed to talk in the first place. His eyes darted around for an excuse to get away, looking at the bar, at the dance floor, the doors along the walls, the exit…

He needed to go outside.

Gasping slightly, the thief fanned his face with his hand.

"Oh, you need air?" he nodded affirmatively. "Can we excuse ourselves for a moment to go outside?"

"Of course, no problem, I won't go anywhere~" Alexander snickered. 

The two stood up and made their way across the crowd to go outside. Luckily, nobody else was taking a moment to calm down outside at that moment. Henry sighed with relief, both from having fresh air blowing in his face and from being away from those people. 

"I can't stand that guy. He makes me uncomfortable." he confessed.

_ "Yeah, and he isn't even talking to you… imagine how I feel."  _ Charles hugged himself and rubbed his arms, shaking once. "I swear, I could feel holes drilling into my skin from how hard he was looking at me…" 

"Charlie, I'm sorry…" 

"Sorry for what? This isn't your fault." the pilot looked back at him and showed a smile, not wanting his partner to worry about him. "This is fine, it isn't anything I can't handle. Besides, he doesn't seem to be the kind of guy to get aggressive or dangerous if you turn him down. He's more like… the kind of guy who continues flirting with you until you very clearly tell him you're not interested." 

"Can't we just mug him, steal his drugs and call it a day?" Henry asked annoyed. "You recorded his whole testament already."

"Yeah, but what we're searching for is evidence of the ball  _ itself  _ being a drug ring. They could easily say that he was just an individual incident." he argued back. "We need to get it directly from the boss himself." 

"I still haven't seen him at all since we arrived…"

"Then let's wait a little more. He must appear at some point, like you said." 

Charles started walking back inside, but Henry grabbed him by his arm to stop him. The two stared at each other for a moment, with Henry not knowing what to say… he simply didn't want him to go back inside.

"...Just be careful around him, okay?" he asked of him. 

"Pfft, don't worry, 'Careful' is my middle name!" the other replied cheerfully, which Henry knew wasn't, in any way, true. Perhaps it was in this timeline, but if past experiences were anything to go by, that man was anything but careful. 

Going back inside, Alexander was still sitting at their table, perking back up as he heard them get close. 

"Welcome back! Is your friend all good now?"

"Mhm, she isn't used to crowded spaces but she's alright now. Thanks for waiting!" Charles answered, using the high pitched voice again. 

"It was  _ en-ti-rin-gly  _ my pleasure~" he turned towards the ex-convict, his smile dropping slightly. "You're able to stay alone for a bit now, right?"

Henry frowned, tilting his head. Alexander snickered at his reaction.

"Don't worry, I just want to take out your beautiful friend for a dance, that's all." 

_ "Huh?"  _ the pilot got nervous.  _ "Dance?" _

"Well yes, that's what you do at a ball, right?" his gaze fixated on him once again. "And you said you've always wanted to go to one, isn't that so, dear Charlotte?" 

"I-" 

He looked at the man and then at Henry, unsure. Honestly he didn't like the idea of leaving them go together, but being left alone could elevate the chances of someone else approaching him and getting more proof. He nodded at him, giving him the green light to go. 

"...Sure. I could do that." 

"Perfect!" Alexander grabbed his hands and stood up. "It won't be long, unless you want it to be~"

The pair walked away to the group of dancing people, Charles looking back at him for a second before disappearing in the crowd. 

Slumping back into his seat, the thief looked at his empty glass. He shouldn't drink more than necessary, but besides that there was nothing else left for him to do. From the corner of his eye, however, a blurry blonde spot moved forwards to sit besides him as soon as he was left alone. The mysterious man didn't say a word when arriving and neither did him, but he did squint his eyes at him questionably.

"Saw you were talking with Johnson." he said, breaking the silence. 

Henry twitched his cheek quickly, as if saying  _ 'And?'. _

"Did you buy anything from him?" 

He shook his head. The man grinned, his eyes looking smaller with the squinting and the bags under them. 

"Yeah, his stuff is hot garbage, aye?" 

Henry looked away for a moment before nodding strongly. 

"Of course, I know a lady of common sense when I see one." he extended his hand forwards. "Name's Harry, at your service." 

The thief shook his hand, but touched his fingers to his lips and shook them from side to side in a negative manner after.

"Can't talk?" he nodded. "I don't think it matters, we are understanding each other pretty well so far. Mind making a purchase?" 

Once again, he nodded. As Harry was taking out a small bag with a type of white powder inside, Henry took out the pocket mirror and pretended to be checking his reflection while actually taking photos of the substance and the dealer. 

"I could make you a deal for first timers, if you want." Harry told him, touching the bag. "One gram. 65 dollars. You in?" 

Slowly, the thief inserted his hand into the purse and begged for something useful to come out. Money would be the easy answer, but he didn't think it would be a good idea to actively participate in the trades. Either way, this method had never worked to give him money. He had tried more than once before. His fingertips touched something unknown and he took it out.

…

A swiss army multi-tool laid in his hand. In any other situation this would have been pretty useful, but… in this case it wasn't. Unless he wanted to intimidate the trader or something. Harry looked at him confused, to which he responded with an apologetic look. 

Someone else came behind the man to talk about something, so his attention was taken off from the substance and the possible client. Taking that opportunity, Henry shoved his hand down again to get something else, hopefully something more fit for the situation at hand.

…

He took out… another bag with something white inside? Opening it, he dipped a finger and brought it to his mouth. 

Oh. Sugar. Oddly useful.

Taking his chance, he switched the two bags without being noticed. Harry looked back at him when the other man left after finishing their conversation, not aware of the change.

"Sorry about that. So, are you buying?"

Henry made a gesture of rubbing his thumb and index finger together, doing the negative shake after. The dealer made a 'tsk', seemingly annoyed.

"Low on cash? You seriously underestimated how expensive things are here if you can't even buy this… how did you make it here without enough money?"

He simply shrugged, looking down. 

"Whatever-" Harry took the bag of sugar back, standing up. "I advise you to not waste anybody else's time like this." 

The thief scowled as soon as he turned his back on him and walked away, sighing irritably.  _ They  _ were the ones wasting his time by making him come here like this… 

At least he had gotten concrete proof now. They were just missing dirt on the leader. 

He got up and went to the center of the room, decided to look for Charles. The dancing pairings waltzed and moved as if synchronized, not bumping nor crashing into one another even once. Walking around it, he recognized Charles' figure dancing alongside Alexander. He didn't bother to wait for the song to fully finish to enter the group of people and go after them, something about that sight made him want to break it as soon as possible. By the time he catched up to them, the song had finished and the people rose a murmur up, thanking each other for the dance. 

"Ah, looks like your guardian has come to pick you up…" he was able to hear as he got closer, the tone being sour. 

As Charles turned around to look at him, his eyes lighting up as soon as finding him in his vision and smiling softly, his heart jumped inside his chest. He genuinely looked happy to see him and that filled him with a fuzzy feeling all over. He shook his head, trying to not focus on that and instead focus on the mission. 

"Thank you for the dance, though I think there are other ladies here who need it more than me." the pilot bid farewell to the man, holding onto Henry's arm.

"Perhaps, but it wouldn't be as good as with you-"

If he meant to say anything else after that, the mic interference stopped him from doing so. One after another, they all looked upwards to the balcony that gave a view of the whole room. Up there, tapping the microphone to check if it worked, was the man Henry recognized from the photo in the file.

Up there stood Lawrence Nightingale, the one behind this whole hidden operation.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is. The ballroom dance chapter. Literally the one scene that drove me to write this whole fanfic. Enjoy

"Good evening to all of our estimated guests, I hope your experience has been nothing short of perfect tonight." the voice resonated strongly inside the mansion, loud enough to reach other rooms farther away. "To be completely honest, this wouldn't have been possible without all of you. The one you should be thanking isn't me, but yourselves! So please, give a round of applause for all of us gathered here tonight!" 

The room was filled with the thundering applause that followed.

"One should always celebrate a party like it is their last." the voice continued once the claps faded away. "At any given moment, tragedy could happen and stain your lives. So go wild: dance like your legs are going to fall apart, drink like a fish, celebrate like the world is going to end tomorrow morning! Because who knows? Maybe it will… or maybe it won't. That's why you have to live everyday like it is your last."

Once again, the sound of applause erupted in the air, momentarily deafening Henry. The speech fell flat on him, feeling in no way genuine. Everyone here knew the ball's true identity, so why need to say this faux speech? Was it in case anyone else was hearing? In case he was recorded?

"I'll not take another minute of this party anymore and take my leave now, though know that the upper levels of Heaven have opened for you and that I will stay close.  _ Over all you _ ." Lawrence signed out with a deep chuckle, turning the microphone off and walking away from the balcony. 

As soon as that last statement was said, the thief noticed that a couple of people had gone up the stairs that connected to the second floor and balcony, out of view. Meanwhile, the host walked down upon the ball and was approached by a woman with excitement. Judging by their reactions, they must have been known acquaintances, very good ones at that. He tugged Charles' arm gently to make him follow, staying not too close but not too far away either from the man. Yet, it was impossible to make out what they were saying without getting extremely close. The couple walked off from the center stage and went to the bar, sitting down at the counter and laughing at something that had been said out of hearing distance. 

"What are they talking about?" the pilot asked in his ear, tickling him slightly.

Henry touched his ear and shook his finger in response.

"You can't hear them? Damn it, neither can I…the music's too loud." the two moved from time to time with the flow of people coming and going. "Who do you think she is?" 

"Friend… maybe lover." he thought out loud, whispering back. "They seem to like each other." 

"So what now?" 

"We need to have him in a more quiet place, like upstairs. I bet he's going to go back as soon as he finishes this meeting, he said so." 

"We just keep watch, then?" 

He nodded, sitting down at a table that was recently abandoned by its former occupants. Charles followed, looking around as if unsure of what to do. He looked worried about something, or perhaps about someone… 

When he went in to whisper again, Henry shied away as a reflex.

_ "Hey, come back here."  _ his companion chuckled lightly, leaning in to find his gaze. 

_ "Sorry, it feels funny when you do that…"  _ Henry only managed to look back at him for a couple of seconds before looking away. He really needed to get his act together, at least until this mission was finished… 

"Anyways… what is going to happen if we get caught?" 

"Hm?" 

_ "What is going to happen if we get caught?"  _ he repeated with more emphasis. 

"... We won't get caught." the other reassured him.

"Huh, you sound pretty sure of yourself." 

"I haven't failed once before, so why would I fail now?" he answered a bit cocky, smirking at him.

"Technically, you  _ do  _ have failed. You were sent to jail after trying to rob a bank, were captured by us-"

"Kidnapped." he corrected

"Kidnapped, whatever… also got sent to The Wall…" 

"But I managed to get out of those situations, did I not? So it doesn't count as failures. I still have a perfect record." 

Though the truth was that he  _ had  _ failed before. Several times. Several, very painful and bad, times. With the ability he had he couldn't see into the future and its outcomes, only reflect on his shortly past mistakes to move forward. Which wasn't saying a lot, there wasn't much to reflect about. He either succeeded or failed by 90% luck and 10% logic.

He liked the appearance of a flawless criminal, though. 

_ "Right…"  _ the pilot looked back at the couple only to look back at Henry again. "They're standing up. They're going to move."

Like a cat stalking its prey, they followed the two suspects at every step they took. Their trail was having lots of detours, as if one of them was trying to make the trip last as much as possible. From the looks of it, there was a discussion going on between them. The host was about to leave the woman behind to walk back upstairs, but was stopped by her grabbing his hand and standing still in place, not moving an inch. The music had gone silent for a moment, indirectly leaving them on the spotlight. 

"Please…" her voice was able to be heard by those who were the closest. "Can't you stay a bit more? Not even for one dance?" 

Tension was forming in the air with every passing second that Lawrence didn't reply to her. Henry held his breath without noticing, unsure if something bad was going to happen. But thinking about it more deeply, there was no way something was going to go wrong. The man had a reputation to maintain. So genuine or not, he turned around and smiled down at the lady.

"Of course, who would I be if I didn't share a dance with you tonight?" he replied, walking back and taking her hands in his. 

There was a hint of the music coming back on. Everyone around them went back to get ready to dance, grabbing their partners and waiting expectantly. Charles stared at them for a moment before doing the same, laying his hand on his shoulder and grabbing the ex-convict's hand with the other without warning. 

_ "W-What are you doing?"  _ he freaked out quietly, taken by surprise. 

_ "We need to stay around them, right? So if they're going to dance, we will too."  _ the pilot wanted to sound confident, but he could tell that he was nervous too. 

A soft tune began playing above, officially beginning the dance. It was a slow song accompanied by the melodious voice of a man that had the dancers holding onto one another and swaying from side to side like boats on a calm sea. 

**_Wise men say, only fools rush in…_ **

Hesitantly, Henry placed his free hand on his partner's waist, careful to not grab it too tight. His heart felt like it was going to burst at any second, being this close… 

**_But I can't help… falling in love with you_ **

They tried following the steps of the couples around them, blending into the crowd and becoming another cog in a clockwork-like dance. 

**_Shall I stay? Would it be a sin?_ **

_ "I know I already said how this whole thing looks like a fairy tale, but…"  _ Charles spoke up, getting close so that the other could hear and looking up.  _ "This really makes it  _ **_feel_ ** _ like one…"  _

**_If I can't help… falling in love with you?_ **

For once, the thief was able to stand the gaze. 

No, it wasn't that… it was that he couldn't look away. He found himself lost in those soft, dark eyes that pleaded him to stay. The people around them seemed to fade away into the background, barely existing for him at that moment where only the two of them stood. A moment where he didn't feel like he was on a mission anymore. A moment where it didn't feel like it was Charlotte and Henrietta dancing to sneak around, but Charles and Henry dancing out of pure want. 

Want… his soul had been wanting for a long time. Longing for care, for touch, to call someone truly his, but his lifestyle didn't give him the privilege to search for that. Not once in his 28 years of life did Henry Stickmin get to fall in love with someone.

And now here he was, with a tremendous wish to hold his partner tight and never let go. One, if not the only person, who he was sure he could call a friend… and that's why the idea of doing something bad enough to lose him made him so afraid. He wanted to hug him close and stay like that, but was afraid that would make him uncomfortable with him. He sometimes wanted to say how much he appreciated and was thankful for his existence, but was afraid that would creep him out. He wanted to… 

Kiss him, he caught himself thinking. 

… 

_ Kiss him?  _

**_Like a river flows, surely to the sea…_ **

His eyes fell down to his lips, making him realize how close their faces were from one another. Once again, he thanked the makeup for not showing his natural blushing. Would he get mad if he…? 

**_Darling, so it goes… some things are meant to be_ **

He always had a strange feeling towards the pilot from the very beginning, but back then it seemed like it was just fondness for him. Which is understandable, he was a stranger to both platonic and romantic feelings alike… so he wasn't able to see the distinction between the two. He just knew that his smile, his laughs and his looks made him feel soft and welcomed. That feeling started out small, just a spark, but with every reunion he had with him that spark began to grow and warm him more. Thinking back on it, he wondered if he did what he did to end up at The Wall partially because he wanted the government to catch him and have the chance to meet him again. 

**_Take my hand, take my whole life too…_ **

His hand moved upwards to lay on his neck, not brave enough to cup his face. Under his fingertips, he could feel that his pulse was quite strong. The hand holding his squeezed in surprise at the touch, the pilot's eyes biggering for a moment but still keeping locked on his. He didn't back away. He thought to himself that maybe… this was it. 

**_For I can't help-_ **

"Well look at that, how is it that neither of you got a dancing partner?" another man walked over to them to comment, breaking the moment. 

He interpreted that the intense daggers the ex-convict glared at him was the result of feeling offended by the comment made. 

"I-I didn't mean it mockingly, I was just surprised… may I?" he clarified nervously, extending a hand. "Wouldn't want to leave a lady dancing alone." 

Charles looked at him absently, like he didn't understand what he had said at all. Leaving the gentleman hanging would have been rude, though, so slowly he accepted the hand to be taken away. Henry didn't have time to fully yearn for the moment back before he was taken too by another man in dance. Out of respect he followed along, but he looked around for his taken partner. The song continued playing over the moving crowd, the words feeling as if they were taunting him.

**_Darling, so it goes… some things are meant to be_ **

He managed to spot him again in between the other dancers, moving along with the other man, but he didn't seem to be aware of his surroundings or his dancing partner. Moving slightly out of sync, different from before, there must have been something that was taking all of his attention.

**_Take my hand, take my whole life too…_ **

Even while knowing that it wasn't done by choice, that ugly feeling settled on his chest again when seeing Charles so far away with someone else. Through the last duration of the dance, the man was confused and intrigued as to what the woman he was dancing with was looking at for so long with such emotion. Meanwhile, the thief couldn't hide from himself anymore what he had uncovered that night. There was no reason to deny it any longer. 

**_For I can't help falling in love with you_ **

Henry Stickmin, who had never experienced the wonder of falling for someone before, was deeply in love with Charles Calvin.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Going to enter exams in a week basically, so I'll be off for a couple of weeks. In the meantime i hope you enjoy this 👉👈

With the song coming to an end, Henry was able to get back to his senses. From the corner of his eyes he saw the host parting ways with the woman and going back upstairs, quickly remembering what they were doing here in the first place. He gave his dancing partner a swift nod and left to get Charles back, grabbing his arm and pulling away without explanation. By the time they had walked up the stairs, Lawrence had disappeared. The hallway's lights weren't turned on, instead only being illuminated by the shining light escaping through the door's crevices from the rooms lined along it.

"Are you sure you saw him go up the stairs?" the pilot asked. 

"Yes, but who knows which of these doors he entered… and there seem to be more ahead." 

The other sighed deeply.

_ "I'm sorry, this is my fault, we should've stayed together…"  _ he suddenly apologized, covering his face with one hand.  _ "I should've just told that guy to fuck off, not cave in like an idiot…"  _

_ "Strong words there, Charlie."  _ the thief chuckled slightly, surprised. Charles wasn't the type to have swearing in his common vocabulary. The only instances where he did swear were scarce and he would only do it if he  _ really  _ meant it, so when it happened the effect was strong. 

"Again, sorry-" 

"Nothing to apologize for." he patted his arm gently. "The road has been bumpty so far and there have been a couple potholes, but nothing has truly gone bad yet." 

"...Yet." 

Henry smirked.

"You know I can't have my luck without unfortune following me right behind. It's just the way it is, but I'll try keeping it at bay for tonight." 

"We shouldn't stall anymore, we look suspicious just standing here…" 

"Right. Let's go."

With a nod of acknowledgement, the two adventured inside the wolf's mouth. The room that the leader owned was probably the fanciest one, typically at the very end, so they ignored the basic-looking rooms that were abundant in the hallway and kept walking. The occasional sound would leak from the insides and be heard in the emptiness of the hall: gone laughter, sour disagreements, scared screaming of something that wasn't there, questionable moaning… 

From time to time people would go in and out of the rooms, ignoring their presence as they walked past except for a couple glances. After taking turns and twists in what seemed to be an infinite labyrinth of halls, they finally got face to face with it: the big, bright red double door from the main room. Besides it, two corridors continued ahead, decorated with a potted plant on each side. 

There was the low rumble of a conversation happening inside, but it wasn't clear enough to make out any of the words being said. Kneeling down in front of it, the duo looked back at each other. 

_ "Okay, what now?"  _ the pilot whispered to him, expectantly.

Henry opened his purse and pushed his hand inside, waiting for something. He pulled out a small device with a button on its center. Intrigued, he pressed it and jumped in place when a thin laser grazed and burned the floor, turning it off immediately. Looking back up, he shook his head.

_ "Yeah, it brings a bit too much attention…"  _ he replied. 

Once again he dove his hand inside the bag to get something else. This time, he pulled out a vial with a silver liquid inside alongside an instruction pamphlet. Something about the liquid making your body flat enough to pass through any lineal crevices… it didn't seem very trustworthy. There weren't even any sources accredited. He shook his head to himself, discarding the small bottle. For a third time he searched for something that could aid them, feeling angsty the more they only sat in front of the door. As they say, third time's the charm and at last, he pulled out… a strange device. It had a cone on each side, was it for hearing perhaps? He held it against the door gently and put his ear against the cone. Somehow, the conversation was cleaner than before, although still fuzzy. The ex-convict moved around carefully to get a better hearing position, getting bits and parts of words as he did so. 

_ "... good so far."  _

_ "I wouldn't want to… don't like getting myself dirty." _

_ "Are you… report back if something happens."  _

He wasn't quick enough to step back when hearing the door handle creek and turn, his weight making the door swing back forcefully and making him fall to his knees. The hearing device was knocked far away, hidden in the shadows of the corridor. 

The man who opened the door looked down at the eavesdropper curiously, looking around the entrance and being surprised with a wide-eyed Charles. 

"Well, well… what do we have here?" Lawrence walked to the door, looking down at him. 

It wasn't the first time that people had tried sneaking into his office, but it sure was the first to have women trying to do so. 

"Care to explain why you're here?" 

Henry kept his gaze in silence, scowling slightly. Far from angering him, it seemed to make the host more curious about his trespasser. 

_ "H-She is mute, sir, she can't talk."  _ the pilot stepped in to say, coming into sight. 

"A mute, albino woman…" he thought out loud. "You're quite the rarity, aren't you?" 

The tone of the man didn't reveal exactly what he had planned for them, and that made him nervous for what was yet to come. He only nodded in agreement. 

"Don't feel like you have to stay on the floor like that." Lawrence chuckled, kneeling down and offering a helping hand. "Let's talk. You two seem… interesting." 

Accepting the help, he got up and the two of them entered the room, the guard from before closing the door behind them. They were offered a seat at a table surrounded by a black leather corner sofa. Henry had expected that after getting caught he would get to go back and choose another option to proceed, but said opportunity wasn't given to him. Though anxious, that must have meant that this route was still salvageable. 

"Don't be so tense, I'm not going to punish you… for now." a low laugh came out of his mouth as he served a cup of wine for them. "I'm just curious as to what you were doing outside of my door." 

"Well sir, you see…" Charles tapped the table with his nails, thinking for excuses. "This is… our first time here." 

"I can tell." he sat down besides the thief, taking a sip from his cup. "I don't think I've seen either of you here until tonight. Maybe I did see you before and forgot,  _ but you…"  _

He pointed a finger at Henry.

_ "I definitely haven't seen you before, because I would remember if I did."  _

The acknowledged gave an awkward smile and turned his head around the other way, fumbling his cup in his hands. This was uncomfortable. Was this how Charles felt with that Alexander guy?

"But we've had a good night so far, you've done an excellent job here! How did you get the idea to do this party?" a hand went inside the purse, ready to record the answer. 

  
  


"Through fun, I suppose." the man's smirk lowered for a second, as if analyzing the intentions behind the question. "The sentiment behind every party is joy and celebration, is it not?" 

"Yes, but… why for this specific reason? You get what I mean, right?"

"I do not, in fact." his demeanor didn't falter under Charles' sweet voice. 

_ "Oh…"  _ his voice trailed off, deciding to keep quiet and look down at his glass. 

_ Smart guy,  _ the ex-convict thought.  _ Or maybe he just isn't as affected as the others by him, which is strange.  _

"You still haven't answered what you were doing outside my door." he reminded them. 

_ "It was because yours looked different from the rest… I guess."  _ the pilot didn't sound sure. 

The other stepped in to help somewhat, getting Charles' attention and doing a motion of pointing at his own eyes and then at Lawrence. 

"Oh… oh right!" he exclaimed, understanding. "We were looking for you, sir."

"...For me?" Henry caught the look that Lawrence gave to him after that statement, his stomach revolving at the feelings behind it. "And for what were you… looking for me?" 

Despite Charles being the one doing the conversation, Lawrence kept looking at Henry and not at him.

"Because we know that you have… the stuff." 

"... The stuff." he looked back at him quickly before settling back on the thief, ignoring the other. "So you can't talk at all?" 

He shook his head. 

"Not even some little noise…?" the host lifted his chin up gently with his finger to get a better look of his face. 

In normal circumstances he would have cringed away from the touch and taken good distance, but right now weren't normal circumstances. He drifted his attention to the emerald green gem on his suit to distract himself from the hunger in his eyes, daydreaming about taking it off his hands and running away like good old times. 

_ " _ _ Excuse _ _ me…"  _ the pilot said loudly, his face wanting to contorn into a frown but restraining himself.  _ "We're talking here, are we not?" _

"...Right, I'm sorry. I'm awfully out of my senses tonight, I hope you understand."  __ he retreated his hand back and turned around to look at him. "So this  _ stuff  _ you're talking about… I don't actually sell it myself, you see. I'm way above that." 

"What do you mean way above?"

"My position doesn't have me selling drugs out there for a living, I can simply sit here and get part of the profits thanks to the aid I provide. Just by hosting this ball I'm doing my part." 

_ Bingo. They had it all. Only thing left to do was somehow get away from this situation. _

"If you don't, then who does?"

"Depending on what you want, the answer will vary. The costs will vary as well. Can you pay for it?"

"Well…pay as in, being able to pay right now?" 

The man nodded. He was at a loss of words, not wanting to outright say they didn't have any money at the moment. Getting out without seemingly having nothing out of this encounter was not possible. At that moment, a risky idea formed in the thief's head. It was wild and it would probably end up very awkwardly, but it was worth a try. Once again he called for his partner's attention and made the sign for "money" followed by pointing at each side and tilting his head in question.  _ Somehow, with such plain signs,  _ he managed to understand what he had asked with shock.

"What is she saying?" Lawrence asked. 

"... She asked if… there was other currency other than money." 

_ "Other-"  _ a nervous laugh escaped from his lips, his cheeks having a glimpse of red although it wasn't clear if it was from the wine or not. "Oh, I like the way this girl thinks~" 

Thinking that the question counted as him accepting his advances, he laid a hand on his pale thigh. Henry was mustering all of his strength to stay where he was. 

"You know, I think we can reach a certain agreement here…" the hand continued touching his leg and ever so slowly making its way up, despite Henry's terror. "I have a couple offerings of sorts that could be of your liking, for the low cost of-" 

Lawrence's expression went from confident to confused, quickly turning to concerned when reaching a certain thing. The ex-convict held his breath in, not daring to look away from him. The pilot, catching up to what had just happened, tensed up. The guard, not knowing what was wrong, stared with interest.

For almost a solid minute nothing but silence was heard in the room, where the tension was gradually becoming thicker and thicker. They were really in it now. Nothing else to do other than reach the boiling point of the situation. 

_ "That isn't a very gentleman thing to do with a lady, is it?"  _ Henry's low voice broke the silence, grinning at the man. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry crimbis!

Saying that 'all Hell broke loose' wouldn't be an understatement. 

_ "What the-!?"  _ the host only managed to blurt out as he reached for something on his waist.

Knowing that what he was reaching for was most likely a gun, Henry obeyed the first thought that came to his mind: he tackled him (to the best of his abilities) to the ground. That seemed to be the correct option: as Lawrence fell to the ground and began wrestling for the gun with him,his other hand swiping his face all around, he shot a lost bullet that ended up hitting his guard's leg, who had taken out his gun too once the commotion started but dropped it from the shock of the pain. 

Had that been one of the options that fate deemed "bad", that bullet would have probably bounced off and hit his head or something like that.

_ "Charles, quick, grab his gun!"  _ he shouted at his partner. 

Getting to work without haste, he scrambled to get the fallen gun and point it towards the guard. The man simply resigned to slide down and sit on the floor, whimpering slightly and applying pressure on his wound. 

Lawrence, seeing how his guard lowered when he talked, took the opportunity to shove him aside and get on top. He tried to handle him by pulling the wig around thinking it was his real hair, but after one tug he threw it away in annoyance. The mouth of the barrel was soon placed against Henry's forehead.

_ "Not so cocky now, huh?" _ the host taunted him out of breath, despite the weak sense of emergency he could see in the thief's eyes. 

"No, pretty sure I still have mine." 

He focused all of his strength into kicking upwards, hitting spot on. All of the air that was in Lawrence's stomach escaped in a single wheeze, his face contorting in pain. At least he was lucky he wasn't able to use his sharp heel. 

_ "Not sure about you, thought."  _

Pushing him off, he pried the weapon off from his hand. No matter how hard he tried to not let go of it, soon enough the gun was pointing towards him this time. The host was rendered helpless, only being able to angrily stare up at the ex-convict. 

"What do you want to do with them…?" Charles asked, glancing between both the guard and him quickly. 

"...We can't walk out the front door. We need another exit." 

_ "A-And you think I'm just going to let you go like that?"  _ Lawrence replied, making an attempt to smirk confidently. 

"If you value your life, yes." Henry stepped on him and forced his body to lie down. 

_ "Pft, if you kill me then that's just more trouble for you." _

"No offense, but a quick death is too easy for you and your little goon.  _ Torture, on the other hand… I have the tools for it."  _

"We aren't afraid of whatever you want to try to do! Bring it-" 

_ "At the back of the mansion, there is a back exit past the garden!"  _ the guard, who had been silent so far, spurred out fearfully after hearing the threat of torture. A little yelp escaped his throat when Lawrence gave him a deadly glare. 

"Can you go with him and confirm that, Charles?" 

"Sure thing!" the pilot pulled the man up to his feet with a little  _ "c'mon, get up",  _ helping him stand up but still pointing the gun at him. "I'll be sure to make it quick." 

With a confirming nod from his partner, he followed the guard's directions and closed the door, leaving the other two alone. Henry's eyes didn't leave his target at any moment, knowing that the moment he was left unsupervised he would try pulling something off. With heavy breaths they just looked at each other with intense hate and malice. However, something shifted in the man's glance after realizing something. 

"Wait a minute… I know you." 

The thief responded with a head tilt, confused. He was sure this was the first time he had met Lawrence.

"Aren't you that criminal that managed to escape imprisonment and stealed from the museum? It's you, isn't it?" he inquired, genuinely curious. 

Hesitant, he nodded affirmatively. The host grinned.

"Mister Stickmin… I had fantasized about meeting you one day, but not like this. I had thought of something more… civil. So that's why you disappeared, you became a government dog?"

He was met with a steady step on top of his stomach, uncomfortable at the amount of force used.

"I don't serve the government, I serve myself. It's the other way around." 

A choked chuckle resonated in the room.

_ "You're a bad liar. Did you know that, mister Stickmin?  _ Maybe you do not serve for the government personally, but I can tell you serve for someone else." 

Henry frowned, lowering the gun slightly while trying to understand what he meant. Yet he stood silent, not wanting to waste breath.

"I don't mean it in the sense of you working for someone else. I mean that you aren't the kind of person to join them just because. They're order, control, methodological; the opposite of what you are. What did they offer you in return, hm?" 

He didn't say anything. There wasn't anything that claimed that he needed to explain or talk about his personal life with this buffoon. 

"Money? A position of power?" the host started guessing, seeing that the thief wasn't going to talk. "The ability to become absolute against the law? Or perhaps a person, a slave? Not necessarily a slave for work, but a-" 

The trajectory of that sentence fell short once Henry took out from the purse the multi-tool, sticking out the knife part of it. The color drained from his face as he gulped down and laughed nervously. 

_ "F-Forgive me, did I touch a nerve? We don't have to-"  _ his body was drowned in panic as the ex-convict kneeled down, foot still over him, and began cutting into his suit. A scared yelp escaped his throat as he tried pushing him away.  _ "PLEASE DON'T DO THIS, I'M SORRY I DIDN'T MEAN TO-"  _

However, his terror subtly lowered as he realized he wasn't feeling any painful slashes across his body, nor was there blood staining his clothes. Just as swiftly as he had started, he made the final cut and pulled away with something in hand. Looking down, Lawrence noticed that all he had done was cut off the part of his suit that showcased his precious bismuth. At this point, this was just adding salt to injury.

The door opened suddenly, startling the thief thinking it was reinforcements that had heard the screaming host, but to his relief the familiar face of his friend greeted him instead.

_ "Are you okay? I heard screaming from here, I think, is everything good?"  _ he asked in a concerned manner, looking around for any kind of visible injury. 

"Yes, what about in your end?"

"There does happen to be a backdoor exit behind, so it is legit." the pilot dragged the guard into the room, tossing him inside as he stumbled and fell to the ground. "Should we do something else with them?" 

"We just need to leave. Leave them." he walked over to the door, keeping an eye on Lawrence as he was about to leave. "Pleasure doing business with you, sir." 

The two closed the door behind them and began their escape, heading down the direction Charles was shown. But what seemed to be a simple breakout ended with the sounds of another two guards walking behind them, with weapons in hand and hearing instructions from a receiver in their ears. They didn't give a warning before shooting fire at them, the surprise had prevented him from being quick enough to fire back and the world soon faded into nothing but black.

  
  


<<

  
  


"There does happen to be a backdoor exit behind, so it is legit." the pilot dragged the guard into the room, tossing him inside as he stumbled and fell to the ground. "Should we do something else with them?" 

Henry didn't answer right away, still shaken up from coming back. There was a small but annoying burning sensation at the back of his head.

"...Hey, Henry? You sure you're okay?" 

"Yeah, it's fine… don't worry about me." he reassured him. "Anyways, we probably shouldn't leave them free like this."

"Should we restrain them?" 

"For the best. Just let me…" he put his hand inside the purse, looking and taking out a good length of rope right away. "Huh. Lucky first time." 

With a little of work, the two criminals were bound to the table. Despite the minimal fighting they put on to try and escape, their arms and legs were strongly tied beyond any hope of breaking loose via force. 

"Think that will hold them off?" Charles asked, admiring his handy work. 

"At least long enough for us to get out, yes. Let's get going." 

The pilot went ahead, looking around to check that the coast was clear. Henry followed right behind, looking behind him at Lawrence one last time before heading out.

"By the way… shave that moustache. You look ridiculous." 

A roar of anger wasn't able to be delivered outside before the door was closed in place. While still inside the mansion they proceeded with caution, careful to not look too suspicious to anyone walking nearby. It wasn't until they got to the door that led to the back garden that they started running for it, with Henry falling behind due to stumbling and tripping with his heels. 

_ "I swear to God-"  _ he stopped for a brief moment to take them off, bitterly throwing them against the ground.  _ "Can't believe people can actually walk in these…"  _

"Oh… Henry-"

"I know, we have to hurry."

"It's not that, it's-"

"The shoes? I don't think they'll mind." he took his hand and continued running, dragging him. "Come on, we have to keep moving. They know where we are and it's only a matter of time after they send others to catch us." 

The rest of the escapade was kept silent, running between trees and bushes where the end wasn't visible yet. Eventually they found the back gate of the garden and got out successfully, for now. 

"We need to go farther… around where we were dropped off." the ex-convict declared. "Maybe even farther away than that, just to make sure." 

"I hope they pick us up fast… did they stay around?"

"They… didn't tell you?"

_ "No…? Did they tell you?" _

**_"..."_ **

_ "...Good. So we don't have a secure way to get out." _ he sighed heavily, looking around the dark road. "What now, chief?" 

"I can call them, it's fine…" 

"Yeah? With what phone?" 

"Just give me a second…" he took a dive inside the bag, only getting out a chain. "... Can we sit down? It might take a while." 

They sat down besides the road and began the search, taking out strange object after object before getting a communicator. Establishing a connection was quick and soon enough they had a team coming to pick them up. Only thing left to do was wait. 

"How did you keep all of this stuff inside that little purse…? It should be outright impossible." Charles asked him once he finished the call. 

The other only responded with a shrug.

"Wha- What do you mean you don't know!? You're the one who did the feat!" Henry chuckled in response, making him pout and look away. "All right, then! Keep your secrets!" 

"It's not a secret, it's just the way it is." 

"Yeah, yeah…" he fanned his hand as to dismiss him in jest, but chuckled and looked back at him. "Anyways, what was all that screaming about?" 

"Hm?" 

"I am  _ at least _ ninety percent sure that the screaming I heard was from the room. So what happened?" 

"Oh… that." remembering the act he has done, a sense of mischief made him start laughing quietly.

"Hey, what's so funny?" 

Taking out the gem that still had strands of clothing around it he showed it to him, an uncontrollable grin spread along his face. Charles' smile dropped.

"Henry, you- you stole that from him?" he asked, surprised.

The thief nodded repeatedly, his behaviour having something of a childish glee to it. He opened his mouth to say something about it, but decided to just sigh and calm down about it.

_ "I guess old habits die hard…"  _ he murmured. "Okay. I'll let you off  _ this  _ time, but only because it was a bad guy." 

"Does that mean I'm allowed to steal from bad guys then?"

Henry was answered with a friendly hit on his arm, the both of them laughing together. 

"So that's why your makeup is all scrubbed, huh? Because of the fighting?" he extended a hand to touch his face, something that Henry gladly allowed to happen. "Man, you look like a mess."

"Because I  _ am  _ a mess." 

_ "No, you're wonderful-"  _ the pilot blushed as he caught himself saying that, taking back his hand and looking away.  _ "I-In the sense that you do a good job."  _

"Same thing… to you." his heart was aching again, but this time he knew the reason why. "You're… also wonderful at work. And as a person." 

_ "Thank you…"  _ Charles looked up at the sky, his hands picking at each other. "I hope they're getting close to us." 

"Yeah… I seriously need to take a bath and take this makeup off." 

"I need food. I'm hungry."

"We can get dinner together. Deal?"

"Deal."


End file.
